Earnings Expectations for the Week of October 15

The earnings crunch gets underway this week, with big names in the financial, technology, consumer goods and other sectors on tap to share their most recent quarterly results. Among those expected to post the biggest year-over-year gains in earnings are Abbott Labs ABT, BlackRock BLK, Chipotle Mexican Grill CMG, Goldman Sachs GS, Mattel MAT, Travelers TRV, Union Pacific UNP and U.S. Bancorp USB. Analysts do not expect to see many net losses posted this week, but Bank of America BAC and Knight Capital KCG are on the list. Here is a quick rundown analysts' expectations for the most prominent quarterly reports due this week. Monday Citigroup C gets the week started off. Analysts are looking for earnings per share (EPS) that are about 22 percent lower than a year ago to $0.96. Revenue is expected to have fallen about 10 percent to $18.7 billion. Newspaper publisher Gannett GCI also reports Monday and is forecast to post earnings and revenue growth. Tuesday The consensus forecast has Goldman Sachs GS swinging from a year-ago net loss of $0.84 per share to a profit of $2.13 per share. That EPS estimate is up from $1.97 just 60 days ago. And third quarter revenue is expected to have more than doubled year-over-year. IBM's IBM EPS are forecast to have risen about nine percent to $3.61 on revenue of $25.4 billion, which would be three percent lower than last year. Analysts regularly underestimate IBM's quarterly EPS. Per-share earnings from Coca-Cola KO, Intel INTC and Johnson & Johnson JNJ are expected to be lower than a year ago to $0.50, $0.50 and $1.21, respectively. All three have topped consensus estimates in recent quarters. Analysts predict Intel will report a decline in revenue, while modest growth in sales is expected from the other two. Domino's Pizza DPZ, Intuitive Surgical ISRG, Mattel MAT, PNC Financial Services PNC and UnitedHealth Group UNH are expected to show earnings growth. But EPS from railroad company CSX CSX and regional bank State Street STT are anticipated to be the same as a year ago. A decline in earnings is predicted for education provider Apollo Group APOL and drug maker Forest Laboratories FRX. Wednesday American Express AXP is expected to report $1.08 EPS and $7.9 billion in revenue, which would be up marginally from the third quarter of 2011. But analysts anticipate that Bank of America BAC will have swung to a net loss of $0.07 per share, compared to a profit of $0.56 in the year-ago quarter. The consensus estimate only swung into the red this past week. The bank's revenue is expected to have declined about 23 percent year-over-year. The consensus forecast for PepsiCo PEP calls for EPS of $1.16 on $16.9 billion in sales. But that would be down from $1.31 per share and $17.5 billion in the third quarter of last year. PepsiCo has not fallen short of analysts' expectations in more than 10 quarters. Thursday's other anticipated earnings gainers include Abbott Laboratories ABT, Bank of New York Mellon BK, BlackRock BLK, Northern Trust NTRS, St. Jude Medical STJ, Stanley Black & Decker SWK and U.S. Bancorp USB. But Halliburton HAL is expected to report EPS lower than year ago despite a rise in revenue. Thursday Google's GOOG third-quarter report will be the highlight on Thursday. Analysts are looking for $10.58 EPS on $11.8 billion in revenue. That compares with $9.72 per share and revenue of $7.5 billion in the year-ago period. If it meets or tops this EPS estimate, this will be Google's highest per-share earnings since the company went public in 2004. Microsoft MSFT is expected to say that its EPS fell more than 17 percent year-over-year to $0.56. The consensus EPS estimate has slipped in the past 60 days from $0.59. Revenue is predicted to have declined about five percent year-over-year. The general release of Windows 8 will not be reflected in this report. Third-quarter earnings from Morgan Stanley MS are forecast to have plunged about 79 percent from a year ago to $0.24 per share. EPS in the previous two quarters fell well short of consensus estimates. In addition, revenue is expected to have dropped more than 35 percent to $6.4 billion. Analysts expect to see strong earnings growth from Verizon Communications VZ -- up almost 14 percent from a year ago to $0.65 per share. Note though that the consensus EPS forecast has slipped from $0.68 per share just 60 days ago. And the anticipated revenue of $28.9 billion would be less than four percent higher than a year ago. Also expected to report higher earnings Thursday: Boston Scientific BSX, Chipotle Mexican Grill CMG, Genuine Parts GPC, Huntington Bancshares HBAN, Philip Morris International PM, Travelers Companies TRV and Union Pacific UNP. EPS from Advanced Micro Devices AMD, Capital One Financial COF, Diamond Offshore Drilling DO, E*Trade Financial ETFC, SanDisk SNDK and Southwest Airlines LUV are expected to be lower than a year ago. Friday General Electric GE and McDonald's MCD are scheduled to report before the opening bell, and analysts anticipate modest year-over-year EPS growth from both of them. The consensus forecasts call for $0.36 per share for the former and $1.48 per share for the latter. GE is expected to post modest revenue growth as well, but sales at the fast-food giant are predicted to be the same as a year ago, or a bit less than $7.2 billion. Honeywell International HON, Ingersoll-Rand IR, Parker-Hannifin PH and Schlumberger SLB are expected to report earnings growth at the end of the week as well.